The present invention relates generally to the retail industry and relates more particularly to merchandise security devices used in the retail industry.
The prevention and deterrence of merchandise theft has been the subject of numerous technical approaches. One type of approach has been to attach to an article of merchandise a security device in the form of an electronic article surveillance (EAS) tag or device, the EAS device being adapted to trigger an alarm or the like if the article is moved beyond a predetermined location and the EAS device has not been deactivated or removed from the article. In the aforementioned type of approach, a transmitting apparatus and a receiving apparatus are typically situated on opposite sides of a passageway leading to an exit of the premises being protected, the transmitting apparatus and the receiving apparatus together defining an interrogation zone. The transmitting apparatus is typically used to transmit over the interrogation zone an interrogation signal that is recognizable by the EAS device and that causes the EAS device, if not deactivated, to emit a response signal. The receiving apparatus is typically used to detect the presence of a response signal from an activated EAS device located within the interrogation zone. The detection by the receiving apparatus of a response signal indicates that the EAS device has not been removed or deactivated and that the article bearing the EAS device may not have been paid for or properly checked out. Typically, the detection of such a response signal by the receiving apparatus triggers an alarm.
One common type of EAS device is referred to in the art as “a hard tag” and is typically used to protect articles of clothing and similar items. Typically, a hard tag comprises a tag body and a removable tack. The tag body is typically made of rigid plastic and houses an EAS sensor. The tack has a sharp end that is adapted to pierce the article being protected and then is adapted to be inserted into the interior of the tag body. A mechanism, which may include a magnetic or mechanical clamp, is typically housed within the tag body and is used to retain the sharp end of the tack within the tag body, thereby preventing the hard tag from being removed from the article. After the article has been purchased, a detaching device is typically used to release the tack from the clamping mechanism, thereby permitting the tack to be removed from the tag body and, in turn, the hard tag to be removed from the article.
One example of a hard tag is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,426,419, inventors Nguyen et al., which issued Jun. 20, 1995, and which is incorporated herein by reference. The hard tag of the aforementioned patent comprises a tag body and a tack, the tack being completely physically separable from the tag body. The tag body comprises an upper housing member and a lower housing member, the upper and lower housing members being joined together by welding or the like and jointly defining a front cavity and a rear cavity. A front opening is provided in the tag body, and interior walls and the sides of the housing members define an arcuate channel leading from the front opening to the front cavity. An EAS sensor is disposed within the rear cavity of the tag body. The tack includes an enlarged tack head and an elongated tack body, the tack body extending from the tack head. The end of the tack body opposite the tack head is pointed for insertion through an article of clothing or the like. A small opening is provided in the upper housing member, the pointed end of the tack body being insertable through said small opening and into a receiving collar disposed within the front cavity of the tag body until the tack head is seated upon the upper housing member. In this manner, by inserting the pointed end of the tack body through an article and then through the small opening in the upper housing member and into the receiving collar, the article is trapped between the tack head and the upper housing member of the tag body. A spring clamp is disposed within the front cavity of the tag body for preventing the tack body from being withdrawn from the tag body, the spring clamp being shaped to include a clamp body and a pair of jaws. The pair of jaws is adapted to grip the tack body and prevent its release from the tag body. To release the tack body from the clamp, an arcuate probe is inserted through the front opening and the arcuate channel and is used to pivot the clamp body until the jaws are moved away from the tack body. The tack may then be removed from the tag body, thereby permitting the tag to be removed from the article. Other tack releasing mechanisms can be used, as are common in the EAS hard tag product line. Particularly, a low cost magnetic release mechanism is common.
Due to their relatively inexpensive nature, electronic article surveillance tags of the type described in detail above have achieved widespread use in the retail industry to prevent the theft or otherwise unauthorized removal of articles from a controlled area.
To enhance their functionality, EAS tags are occasionally equipped with a radio frequency identification (RFID) device. As a result, hard tags with RFID capabilities can be used not only in security applications but also to store pertinent data relating to the article to which it is attached (e.g., a unique identification code and/or visually perceptive information relating to the article, such as manufacturer, size, shape, style and/or color) as well as any data relating to the shipping containers and pallets which house the individual articles. As can be appreciated, the use of radio frequency identification technology in the retail industry introduces a number of notable advantages including, but not limited to, (i) the elimination of the need for a direct line of sight during the automatic exchange of data (which is presently required in bar code systems), (ii) the ability to exchange a large quantity of data within a relatively short period of time, thereby affording a retailer with greater product control, greater efficiency in managing inventory and greater effectiveness in tracking a product, and (iii) the ability to extract data in a fully automated fashion, thereby reducing labor costs and increasing data accuracy.
An RFID device, such as a label or tag, often comprises an RFID inlay that is secured to the underside of a printable face sheet (or facestock) by means of a layer of pressure sensitive adhesive. The RFID inlay commonly includes a substrate, an antenna disposed on one surface of substrate and an RFID integrated circuit (IC) chip coupled to the antenna. It is to be understood that the IC chip is designed to both store pertinent data relating to the article and, when induced, generate a radio frequency signal relating to said data which is in turn propagated by the antenna.
RFID devices include active tags and labels, which include a power source, and passive tags and labels, which do not. In the case of passive devices, in order to retrieve the information from the chip, a “base station” or “reader” sends an excitation signal to the RFID tag or label. The excitation signal energizes the tag or label, and the RFID circuitry transmits the stored information back to the reader. The RFID reader receives and decodes the information from the RFID tag. In general, RFID tags can retain and transmit enough information to uniquely identify individual items, packages, inventory and the like. RFID tags and labels also can be characterized as to those to which information is written only once (although the information may be read repeatedly), and those to which information may be written during use. For example, RFID tags may store environmental data (that may be detected by an associated sensor), logistical histories, state data, etc.
Hard tags that are equipped with both electronic article surveillance (EAS) and radio frequency identification (RFID) devices are commonly referred to in the art simply as “combination hard tags”. Examples of combination hard tags include U.S. Pat. No. 7,183,917 to A. Piccoli et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,955,951 to J. Wischerop et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 5,942,978 to G. Shafer, all of said patents being incorporated herein by reference.
Combination hard tags of the type referenced above have been found to suffer from a notable shortcoming. Specifically, many participants in the retail supply chain are not in possession of the necessary equipment to read and/or program the IC chip for an RFID device. As a result, these participants are largely unwilling to pay for a combination hard tag that is considerably more expensive than a conventional EAS hard tag (due to the substantial cost associated with the IC chip in an RFID device). For this reason, the integration of combination hard tags into the retail landscape has been met with significant resistance.